I write a weekly travel column for the Columbia Daily Tribune. This blog had focused on stories about American Indian Sites and includes more pictures than my column allows for. I added some stories about native people in other places and will now be putting in stories about American Presidents homes and museums and stories I have written about historical places and museums in the United States.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum

Reagan museum surprises visitors with
diverse displays

A statue of Ronald Reagan greets visitors at the entrance to the Reagan
Presidential Library and Museum

When I first visited the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
and Museum north of Los Angeles
in 2001, a special exhibit featured 40 paintings Norman Rockwell made for The
Saturday Evening Post and Look magazine. Art critic David Hickey wrote that
Rockwell "portrayed a world in which the minimum conditions of democracy
are made visible, a world where decency, tolerance and basic goodness are
manifested and lived daily."

That these folksy paintings were on display at the Reagan museum was
appropriate because Reagan and Rockwell had similar values and were both
accused of "cornball sentimentality." I don’t know if Rockwell was
Reagan’s favorite artist, but I suspect he was.

I have visited most of the great art museums of Western culture. I really
love them, but the atmosphere is often hushed, and a sense of great
significance hangs in the air. Rockwell might have been dismissed as only an
illustrator, but the audience visiting the Reagan museum talked about the
pictures and laughed with recognition at situations. The friendly nature of the
visitors’ interaction, along with the impact of Reagan’s speeches and the
historical memorabilia on display, contributed to an emotional experience.

In 2004, I returned for a second visit. The Air Force One Pavilion was under
construction. The Boeing 707 first used by President Richard Nixon in 1973 and
then by Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, Reagan and the first President George Bush
would be housed there. Also included were Reagan’s presidential parade
limousine and a Marine One helicopter.

IN FILM AND MEMENTOS

The pavilion was the future, but I continued to find the museum impressive
in its own right.

Visitors start their tour by watching a movie of speech excerpts, with
Reagan giving background commentary. As I listened, I remembered how he could
bring out strong feelings in others with his own emotional responses, which
sometimes included tears. In the film, the faces in his audiences convey a
symphony of feelings. Another short film gives an overview of Reagan’s life.

On my second visit, the temporary entry display contained great paintings of
all our presidents, accompanied by short biographies.

In the museum, much is done with montages. One is a collection of the
posters of Reagan’s films. In other areas are mementos from his radio and Army
days and costumes from his movies. One display mirrors his family’s kitchen
from his childhood, where he developed a taste for his favorite foods: eggplant
lasagna, macaroni and cheese, meatloaf and split-pea soup.

Reagan’s life was frequently recorded on film, and throughout the museum,
televisions and movie screens play the important moments in his life. In one
room, an ancient TV shows him in the early days of campaigning for office.
Another plays excerpts of his films, with some emphasis on his favorite roles
as George Gipp in "Knute Rockne" and as Drake McHugh in "King’s Row."

The display that put the biggest lump in my throat was the film on the
assassination attempt by John Hinckley. It is little known how close to death
Reagan came; his humor and good will were important in handling a critical
situation. As he lay in the operating
room with a bullet an inch from his heart, doctors reported that he grinned and
murmured, "Please tell me you’re Republicans."

There are films of most of the great events of his administration, such as
his Brandenburg speech: "General Secretary
Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to
this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this
wall!"

To emphasize his success in dealing with the Cold War, outside the back door
of the museum is a section of that wall covered with graffiti by Germans
unhappy with being forcibly divided by the Soviet Union.

A
replica of Reagan’s Oval Office

In a replica of Reagan’s Oval Office, a guide relates how the president
hastened the collapse of the Soviet Union and
pushed for the rebuilding of the military. Here, as in other places, are guides
who answer questions and give short presentations.

A large area is devoted to Reagan’s love of physical activities, with
mementos of his horseback riding, ranch work, swimming, target shooting and
golf and many gifts from sports heroes. Through it all, there is much emphasis
on Nancy and
the important role she has played in his life.

EDUCATE, ENTERTAIN, STIMULATE

Staff members say their goal is not only to educate and entertain, but to
stimulate visitors’ involvement in historical events. These goals are
demonstrated by the choice of special exhibits. For example, I would have liked
to have been there to see "Spies: Secrets From the CIA, KBG and Hollywood."

When we were there, a 4,000-square-foot gallery inside the new
25,000-square-foot Presidential Learning Center featured "Lewis and Clark:
A Discovery for All Ages."

As the museum’s publicity materials say, "This hands-on exhibit
incorporates movie-set-style replicas for visitors to explore: look at a
40-foot replica of their keelboat; walk up the Missouri River dock and examine
the trade-goods Lewis and Clark brought with them on their expedition; peer inside
a full-scale Teton Sioux tepee and learn what was used inside them; enter the
gates at Fort Clatsop and see how the group spent their winter before returning
home; and much more."

Even for visitors who are not fans of Reagan as an actor or a politician,
this is an interesting and at times surprising experience.

Former
First Lady Nancy Reagan unveils the cornerstone for the Air Force One Pavilion
at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum on “February 6, 2004.

Reagan’s legacy elicits feelings of loss
for many A few months after my visit in 2004 Reagan died and I wrote
the following column for the Columbia Daily Tribune.

Last week millions of people who didn’t know President
Ronald Reagan personally, even some who were not alive when he was president,
showed strong emotional reactions to his death. The media have done numerous
recaps of his life and contributions and gave complete coverage to the funeral.

I’ve been asked a number of questions, such as, "How come such a strong
reaction?" "Isn’t all this emotion unusual?" "Why are even
teenagers who weren’t alive when he was president showing grief?"

Each of us has a different combination of reasons for mourning, but some
common factors are related to our basic nature as human beings.

Most of us are by nature cooperative because alone we are relatively
helpless. As part of this willingness to cooperate for mutual benefit, we
respond positively to leaders who can get us to work together toward a common
goal.

Reagan convinced us he wanted only the best for us, and even his detractors
didn’t question his sincerity. As the "great communicator," he acted
as a unifier of the citizens, not a divider.

Charisma

A charismatic leader often projects an image that might have little to do
with who he or she is as a person. Because he had been an actor, Reagan was
accused of playing the role of a lifetime as president. I would suggest that
the presidency is a role regardless of who fills it and that to do it right, it
is necessary for a person to act presidential. The incumbent becomes the role.

Leaders with a charisma that includes much charm, humor and touches of
humanity, such as Roosevelt, Kennedy and Reagan possessed, elicit special
feelings of loss when they die, and a whole nation mourns. A rush to
memorialize them includes naming streets, schools and public buildings after
them. A movement already has started to put Reagan’s portrait on the $10 bill.

This need to memorialize a dead leader also seems to go with our human
nature. This behavior can be found in our earliest recorded history as communal
mourning when a leader died. Even prehistoric remains found in graves suggest
that leaders were buried with special ceremonies and often with the sacrifice
of wives and servants buried with them.

Super parent

Some psychological factors are related to leaders in general. By reason of
their personalities, they become parent figures to us, and we place a great
deal of faith in them to take care of us and see to our welfare. For most of us
older than 30, Reagan is an integral part of our history. We were reminded, by
sound bites from his speeches and tributes by other important leaders, of our
anxieties at the time he served and how he calmed them. His death brings
closure to a time we lived through, and so a part of what we are is gone.

Many people will feel as if a close relative has died. In some cases, we
mourn more at the death of a leader than we do for a relative. I remember the
public showing similar feelings of personal loss when Roosevelt and Kennedy
died.

Finally, young people who didn’t know him as president probably are showing
a sympathy response. When others around us are sad or showing strong emotion,
most normal people will respond with similar feelings. I suspect that if a
15-year-old is feeling a sense of loss, he or she probably caught it from
relatives or by watching too much television.

Grieving a loss is normal when we have felt a connection to a person. Part
of Reagan’s legacy is the number of people who felt a strong connection with
him, even people such as me who disagreed with many of his policies.

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